A new study by Mayo Clinic researchers has suggested that obstructive sleep apnea may be a risk factor for sudden cardiac death.
A new study by Mayo Clinic researchers has suggested that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) - and in particular, the low nighttime oxygen saturation of the blood it causes - may be a risk factor for sudden cardiac death (SCD).
OSA is a condition that disrupts breathing during sleep and is associated with obesity. The new study identified OSA as one of two traits that increase the risk of SCD.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea - Overview
Obstructive sleep apnea should be suspected in overweight middle aged adults who snore loudly and which can cause interruption of breathing for 10 seconds or more and this results in reduced blood o
Obstructive sleep apnea should be suspected in overweight middle aged adults who snore loudly and which can cause interruption of breathing for 10 seconds or more and this results in reduced blood o
If further studies confirm these findings, OSA would join established risk factors such as smoking, obesity, high cholesterol and high blood pressure.
Doctors have suspected for years that OSA might be implicated in SCD because of evidence that low oxygen alters the blood vessels in a way that promotes heart disease.
Animation of heart attack symptoms
Heart attack can cause symptoms such as Chest pain or discomfort, Shortness of breath and pain in neck, back, arm, or shoulder and is due to blockage of blood supply to the heart muscles
Heart attack can cause symptoms such as Chest pain or discomfort, Shortness of breath and pain in neck, back, arm, or shoulder and is due to blockage of blood supply to the heart muscles
Virend Somers, M.D., Ph.D., the study’s principal investigator, said: “Nighttime low oxygen saturation in the blood is an important complication of obstructive sleep apnea".
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Sleep is the blissful state that rejuvenates our mind and body everyday and any deprivation often leads to a disorder that can affect our health
Sleep is the blissful state that rejuvenates our mind and body everyday and any deprivation often leads to a disorder that can affect our health
These findings implicate OSA, a relatively common condition, as a novel risk factor for SCD,” Somers added.
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During a follow-up period of up to 15 years, researchers assessed cases where patients had sudden cardiac arrest, and either died (SCD) or were resuscitated, in relationship to the presence of OSA and other data, including nighttime levels of oxygen saturation in the blood.
Results showed that during an average follow-up of 5.3 years, 142 patients had suffered SCD and either died or were resuscitated.
The study has been presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2008 in New Orleans.
Source-ANI
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